Nanchang Bao’an Temple

A wangye temple established in 1718 near the site of a Qing dynasty naval shipyard (南廠), colloquially known as Wánggōng (王宮), a name that gave rise to the surrounding street names. The temple houses a bìxì (贔屭) stone tortoise, originally one of ten commissioned by the Qianlong Emperor in 1788 to honour the suppression of the Lin Shuangwen Rebellion (林爽文事件). This bìxì was lost at sea during transport from Fujian and lay submerged for over a century before fishermen dredged it up in 1911; it was subsequently enshrined under the name Bailian Shengmu (白蓮聖母), the White Lotus Holy Mother, and attracted thousands of devotees. The temple’s door gods were painted by Pan Lishui (潘麗水), and Bao’an Road (保安路), one of Tainan’s most celebrated street food corridors, takes its name from the temple.